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Sports Illustrated: Freeze on short list for UF job, Mullen makes sense for Michigan
By Drew Laing
Published:
In the wake of a breakout season for both Ole Miss and Mississippi State, it’s natural to hear the head coaches pop up as possible candidates for jobs elsewhere at bigger programs.
But according to Sports Illustrated’s Pete Thamel, it may be a lot more serious than that for Hugh Freeze and Dan Mullen.
Thamel reports that multiple sources have told SI Freeze is on the short list of candidates for Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley.
From Thamel:
Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley is expected to act quickly. While it’s still unknown where Freeze is in Florida’s pecking order, Ole Miss boosters and administrators are already scared enough that they’re calling around to see if they can secure enough money to keep Freeze. Expect Freeze to be much wealthier by the end of this week, but the question will be whether his paychecks are coming from Oxford or Gainesville.
Freeze as an option to Florida makes a lot of sense because of his offensive background (and success) at multiple places, but he’s also developed a reputation as a top-notch recruiter, securing a top-10 recruiting class in 2013 with the Rebels.
As for Mullen, Thamel speculates the school to watch out for is Michigan. Technically, the Wolverines still have their head coach, but it seems like only a matter of time when they fire Brady Hoke. And when they do, Thamel expects Mullen to be one of the first options.
Things may unfold a bit slower for Mullen, as it’s unknown how serious of a candidate he’ll be at Michigan. But with the Wolverines offense a mess and their inability to develop a quarterback glaring, it would only be logical that they give Mullen a look after he led Mississippi State to its first ever 10-win regular season and helped develop Prescott into a Heisman candidate.
Both Freeze and Mullen have brought national relevancy to the state of Mississippi this season and it appears college football’s attention will stay fixated on the Rebels and Bulldogs with the rumors of major coaching shakeups in the SEC on the horizon.
Drew Laing will be providing analysis and insight on Florida, Georgia, Missouri and South Carolina.
